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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: race · craft · rush · date · season · branch · club · field

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. race — a contest
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. rush — hurry
  5. field — a subject
  6. race — the arms race
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. date — the fruit
  9. branch — a division
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. club — for golf
  12. club — a group
  13. race — humankind
  14. craft — a skill
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. season — of the year
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. field — farmland
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. season — in sport
  23. craft — boats
  24. field — for sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com